Lego Augmented Reality Coming to a Store Near You

The DIGITAL BOX at a LEGO retail store shows in 3D exactly how the product will look when it has been fully assembled, even before you open the box. [Credit: Metaio/LEGO]

Buying big Lego sets when I was little was always a bit of an adventure. What would the sets look like when they were assembled? How would those palm trees look from the side of the pirate island? Combining their powers with 3D animation experts Metaio, Lego is bringing augmented reality Digital Boxes to its stores to show you just what that Lego set will look like when it's fully built. Video after the jump.

While you can't hold a completed Lego set in your hands before you buy it, you can hold an unbuilt set up to the Digital Box, which will show you holding a 3D model of the finished set. You can look at every angle and detail of the assembled bricks without taking them out of the box!

What's it like to use the Digital Box's augmented reality to preview your finished Lego construction projects? In the press release, Torben Nielsen, Directory of 3D technology in the Lego Group's Digital Development Department reports receiving "very positive feedback from our stores and customers." If you're near a Lego store in the US, the UK, or Germany, try out one of the Digital Boxes and let us know how it goes!